Well, this is really scary!
If you have a little child at home then do take note of any accessories or things that they will wear on their bodies. What was thought to be a minor skin allergy on a little 4-year-old girl’s arm in Anhui, China turned out to be something seriously unexpected.
According to China Times, about six months ago, a red and inflamed looking ring of flesh swelled up and was circling Le Le’s arm so her grandparents brought her to the doctor. They thought that it was a skin allergy and diagnosed it as such but her condition continued to deteriorate.
Le Le lived with her grandparents as her parents were working far away. When her parents came back to the grandparents’ place during Chinese New Year, they noticed that she was experiencing severe pain which affected the movement of her hand.
Worried, her parents brought her to other doctors but they could not determine the cause of the pain and swelling until they decided to bring her to the Children’s Hospital in Zhejiang. She was taken to do an X-ray and that was when the doctors realised that the “ring of flesh” around her arm was caused by a foreign object.
It turns out that it was actually an ordinary rubber band but was embedded so deeply into her flesh that it could only be removed by surgery. Yes, those normal rubber bands that you probably have dozens at home! Fortunately, the pain on Le Le’s arm subsided after the doctor successfully performed the operation to remove the rubber band.
Dr Ye Wensong, one of the leading doctors in the hospital said that this was a very rare case and in his 20 years as a doctor, this was only the second time he had seen such an issue. However, there have been other cases where little children suffered injuries due to strings or thread that they would wear around their arms or legs.
He advises parents to keep a close eye on their children and discouraged them from allowing their young children to wear thin string bracelets or similar items. Many elders are accustomed to tying red or yellow strings around children’s wrists as they believe that it is a sort of talisman but he says this poses many hidden dangers.
Dr Ye said that these thin strings or bands are easily hidden among the folds of skin and said that it should not be given to children under the age of three. Often, they are too young to express their discomfort and by the time parents notice it, the condition might have already become too severe.
You heard the doctor, don’t let your young child play with such objects!
Also read: Study Shows Toy Rubber Ducks Have Millions of Bacteria Which Can Make Children Sick